Biography
American actor Ed Asner grew up having to defend himself both vocally and
physically; he was raised in the only Jewish family in a neighborhood. A born
competitor, Asner played championship football in high school, and while serving
in World War II, he organized a top-notch basketball team which toured most of
liberated Europe. (An observation without further comment: Ed Asner lists his
birth year as 1929. World War II ended in 1945.) Asner's performing career got
its start while he was announcing for his high school radio station; moving to
Chicago in the 1950s, the actor was briefly a member of the Playwrights Theatre
Club until he went to New York to try his luck on Broadway. Asner starred for
several years in the off-Broadway production Threepenny Opera, and, toward the
end of the 1950s, he picked up the occasional check as a film actor for
industrial short subjects and TV appearances. Between 1960 and 1965 Asner
established himself as one of TV's most reliable villains; thanks to his
resemblance to certain Soviet politicians, the actor was particularly busy
during the "spy show" boom of 1964-66. He also showed up briefly as a regular on
the New York-filmed dramatic series Slattery's People. Film roles became larger
(Marlowe [1967]), but it was in a relatively minor part as a cop in Elvis
Presley's Change of Habit (1969) that Asner first worked with Mary Tyler Moore.
In 1970, over Mary's initial hesitation (she wasn't certain he was funny
enough), Asner was cast as Lou Grant, the irascible head of the WJM newsroom on
The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The series ran for seven seasons, during which time
Asner earned three Emmy's. His new stardom allowed Asner a wider variety of
select roles, including a continuing villaionous appearance on the miniseries
Roots - which earned him another Emmy. When Mary Tyler Moore shut down
production, Asner took his Lou Grant characterization into an hour-long dramatic
weekly about a big-city newspaper: the title, of course, was Lou Grant. The
series' marked liberal stance seemed to some viewers to be an extension of
Asner's real-life viewpoint. While Lou Grant was in production, Asner was twice
elected the head of the Screen Actors Guild, a position that he frequently
utilized as a forum for his political opinions - notably his opposition to US
involvement in Central America. When Asner suggested that each guild member
contribute towards opposing the country's foreign policy, he clashed head to
head with Charlton Heston, who wrested Asner's office from him in a highly
publicized power play. Though no tangible proof has ever been offered, it was
Asner's belief that Lou Grant was cancelled in 1982 thanks to his politics and
not because of dwindling ratings. The actor continued to prosper professionally
after Lou Grant, however, and during the remaining years of the 1980s starred in
several TV movies, in addition to headlining two regular TV series: Off the Rack
and The Bronx Zoo. Slowed down but hardly halted by health problems in the
1990s, Ed Asner managed to find time to appear in the weekly sitcoms Hearts
Afire and Thunder Alley - atypically cast in the latter show as an ineffective
grouch who was easily brow-beaten by his daughter and grandchildren.

Filmography
Greatest Adventure Stories from the Bible: Joshua and the Battle of Jericho
Shelley Duvall's Tall Tales and Legends: Darlin' Clementine
Looking Into the Face of Evil
The Last Stand: The Struggle for the Ballona Wetlands
Fixing the World
The Animal (2001)
Here's Looking at You, Kid! (2001)
Common Ground (2000)
Perfect Game (2000)
Olive, the Other Reindeer (2000)
Becoming Dick (2000)
The Kid (2000)
Above Suspicion (2000)
Bring Him Home (2000)
The Bachelor (1999)
Love and Action in Chicago (1999)
Hard Rain (1998)
The Closer (1998)
Armistead Maupin's More Tales Of The City (1998)
The Prohibition Era, Vol. 1: The Dry Crusade (1998)
The Prohibition Era, Vol. 2: The Roaring Twenties (1998)
The Prohibition Era, Vol. 3: The Road to Repeal (1998)
The Long Way Home (1997)
A Christmas Carol (1997)
Great Escapes of WWII, The Great Escape (1997)
Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press (1996)
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest: Nuclear Netherworld (1996)
3x3 Eyes: The Legend of the Divine Demon - The Descent (1995)
3x3 Eyes: The Legend of the Divine Demon - The Key (1995)
3x3 Eyes: The Legend of the Divine Demon - The Return (1995)
Jewish Holidays Video Guide (1994)
Heads (1994)
The Expectant Father (1993)
Earth and the American Dream (1993)
Gypsy (1993)
Cruel Doubt, Part 1 (1992)
Cruel Doubt, Part 2 (1992)
Happily Ever After (1991)
JFK (1991)
Silent Motive (1991)
Switched at Birth (1991)
The Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus (1991)
Good Cops, Bad Cops (1990)
Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (1990)
Reading Rainbow: Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures with the Family Lazardo (1989)
Moon over Parador (1988)
A Friendship in Vienna (1988)
Jerusalem: City of Peace (1987)
Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night (1987)
Cracked Up (1987)
Less Stress in 5 Easy Steps (1986)
My Darlin' Clementine (1986)
The Christmas Star (1986)
Kate's Secret (1986)
Vital Signs (1986)
Anatomy of an Illness (1984)
A Case of Libel (1983)
Daniel (1983)
O'Hara's Wife (1982)
Fort Apache, the Bronx (1981)
A Small Killing (1981)
The Marva Collins Story (1981)
Americas in Transition (1981)
Lou Grant, Vol. 2: Hostages (197?)
Lou Grant, Vol. 3: Hoax (197?)
Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970s)
The Family Man (1979)
The Good Doctor (1978)
The Gathering (1977)
Lou Grant, Vol. 1: Cophouse (1977)
Roots (1977)
Huey Long (1977)
Roots (1977)
Gus, The Pigskin Uncle (1976)
The Life and Assassination of the Kingfish (1976)
Gus (1976)
Death Scream (1975)
Hey, I'm Alive! (1975)
The Impersonation Murder Case (1975)
The Impostor (1975)
The Wrestler (1973)
The Girl Most Likely To (1973)
Police Story (1973)
Haunts of the Very Rich (1972)
The Skin Game (1971)
The Todd Killings (1971)
The Last Child (1971)
They Call It Murder (1971)
They Call Me Mister Tibbs! (1970)
Do Not Throw Cushions into the Ring (1970)
Halls of Anger (1970)
The House on Greenapple Road (1970)
Fugitive, Vol. 13 (196?)
Change of Habit (1969)
Mary Tyler Moore Show, Vol. 1 (1969)
Mod Squad, Vol. 5 (1969)
Daughter of the Mind (1969)
Mission: Impossible: The Mind of Stefan Miklos (1969)
The Invaders, Vol. 7: Wall of Crystal (1968)
Gunn (1967)
The Venetian Affair (1967)
El Dorado (1967)
The Doomsday Flight (1966)
The Slender Thread (1965)
The Satan Bug (1965)
The Outer Limits, Vol. 23: Second Chance (1964)
The Outer Limits, Vol. 11: It Crawled out of Woodwork (1963)
Kid Galahad (1962)

Awards:
1971: Emmy: Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (comedy),
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
1971: Golden Globe: Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series, The Mary Tyler
Moore Show
1972: Emmy: Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (comedy),
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
1975: Emmy: Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy
Series, The Mary Tyler Moore Show
1975: Golden Globe: Best Supporting Actor in Television, The Mary Tyler Moore
Show; award shared with Tim Conway
1976: Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy
Series, Rich Man, Poor Man
1976: Golden Globe: Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series, Rich Man, Poor
Man
1977: Emmy: Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or
Drama Series, Roots
1977: Golden Globe: Best Actor in a Television Series (drama), Lou Grant
1978: Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Lou Grant
1979: Golden Globe: Best Actor in a Television Series (drama), Lou Grant
1980: Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Lou Grant

Factoids:
Asner's seven Emmys make him the most honored male perfomer in the award's
history

Education:
University of Chicago, Illinois (1947-49)
Trained with Playwrights Theater Club and Second City, Chicago
Studied under Mike Nichols